Helmeted Iguana

One of the coolest things we saw at Carara National Park yesterday was a Perro Zompopo · Helmeted Iguana – Corytophanes cristatus also known as the Smooth Helmeted Iguana, Helmeted Basilisk, Helmeted Lizard and a few other common names. With that Perro Zompopo being the official Spanish common name on iNaturalist and of course that 3rd Latin name is the scientific name. He was in a lot of shade behind trees, limbs and vines in the thick transitional forest of Carara, thus difficult to photograph. The above shot with a greenish hue was on my Canon Camera while my cell phone shot through the spotting scope had a duller, brownish hue. 🙂 And my identification has not yet been approved by a specialist on iNaturalist, but I’m sort of confident of this.

Perro Zompopo -Helmeted Iguana – Corytophanes cristatus in Carara National Park, Puntarenas.

We got scads of bird photos on Rio Tarcoles but it may take awhile to work through all of them, while the complicated online way of now entering national parks meant we didn’t get on trail to after 11 which is too late for birds, but our excellent guide, Andrys, found lots of other nature to experience and photograph. Both experiences were really good, though too much for one day for our age group. 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Augochlorine Sweat Bees, Tribe Augochlorini

This tiny little bee on the Spadix of an Anthurium (not a large pistil) was, I first thought, a Green Orchid Bee, but the AI of iNaturalist says no, it is one of many different species of sweat bees and once I post it on iNaturalist, it may or may not be given a species name, just the Tribe Augochlorini. He will go in my general Bees Gallery with only this tribal name for now. 🙂 He is less than half the size of yesterday’s orchid bee.

Augochlorine Sweat Bees, Tribe Augochlorini, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

My First 2026 Photography Day Trip Today

Early this morning Walter will take me and a group of 4 Canadian friends to breakfast at El Jardin on our way to a birding boat trip on Rio Tarcoles to its mouth on the coast followed by a birding hike in nearby Carara National Park, then lunch somewhere on our way back to Atenas. This is the second time I’ve arranged this always productive birding trip for this group.

Then on Thursday we go, at their request, to a mountain Cloud Forest Reserve north of San Ramon. There will not be as many birds there but all will be different from what was seen on the coast. Plus that 6:30am guided hike will be followed by a great “farm to table” breakfast at the Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Resort. I spent a couple of nights there during my earlier years in Costa Rica (2017) and it is nice, but I photographed only 9 species of birds that one time there. 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Belted Orchid Bee

The unusual “Cigar Plant,” Pampano or Gadetea in Spanish (Calathea lutea, scientific name) doesn’t attract many birds (an occasional hummingbird) but this large bee seems to like its nectar. The Belted Orchid Bee, Eulaema cingulata, is one of 8+ species in my Bees Gallery for Costa Rica. I may soon break that gallery up into species galleries. And with the mostly windy days now, bees are sometimes all I can find to photograph! But tomorrow I go birding with some visiting Canadian friends to Rio Tarcoles & Carara National Park, so that will boost my lagging daily photos! 🙂

Belted Orchid Bee, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
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Western Cattle-Egret

A small flock of these egrets flying up and away from the Cow Pasture across the street on January 31. They are regulars at the pasture but I seldom try to photograph. A small group of houses are at the south end of the pasture and the birds are flying up from the pasture and over those houses. I’m able to get closer and better photos on some of my river trips as you can see in my Cattle-Egrets Gallery. Just the one photo here.

Western Cattle-Egret, Cow Pasture, Roca Verde, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Hesperini Tribe

This tribe level identification means it will be difficult even for the experts to identify, as that is as far down the ID latter the iNaturalist AI would go and I’m certainly unqualified to go farther. It may end up being a common species with two anomalies, that dark “plate” or whatever on his back or shoulders and the whitish tip of his tail. Neither characteristic matches any of the similar species photos I could find, so I’m leaving it at the tribe level. 🙂 Found in the cow pasture and it is the last one from that visual adventure. 🙂 This tribe is also called “branded grass skippers” which is appropriate for one found in the grasses of a cow pasture! 🙂

Hesperini Tribe or branded grass skipper butterfly, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

An added side-note on that walk along the cow pasture in my shorts is that, when I got back to the house, both legs were itching all over, possibly from some insect in the grasses or allergic reaction to some plant. A generous lathering of Allergel took care of that itching pretty quickly! 🙂 This is all from the cow pasture for now. Back to my garden! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

PS to Anyone Who Tried to Subscribe to my Blog and it Didn’t Work!

Technology drives me crazy sometimes and it seems that the email subscription box in the right column wasn’t working for maybe a year or more, but when I realized it, I found someone who could fix it and it is working fine as of the other day. If you don’t have an email subscription, you are missing the easiest way to receive my blog posts with guaranteed security and no spam! So subscribe today! 🙂

Cow Pasture Banded Peacock

It is not all little dull brown butterflies in the cow pasture, but some colorful ones too! 🙂 It was also interesting to note that most of them stayed close to the ground or down low in the tall grasses, only occasionally flying or landing up higher to, I guess, absorb the sun or eat from a flower. This one may be my most seen butterfly all over Costa Rica, as you can see in my gallery: Banded Peacock, Anartia fatima.

Banded Peacock Butterfly, Cow Pasture, Roca Verde, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Hermes Satyr

This interesting species was very common in my garden in past years, but not this year. Now I know where they are! In the cow pasture across the street! 🙂 Note that this is almost identical to the Carolina Satyr found only in the U.S. See my other photos in the gallery: Hermes Satyr – Hermeuptychia hermes.

Hermes Satyr, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
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Laverna Metalmark

Of the many Metalmark Butterflies (Riodinidae) in Costa Rica, this is the species that I personally see the most of with more photos in the gallery: Laverna Metalmark, Calephelis laverna. And here he is in a cow pasture! 🙂

Laverna Metalmark, Cow Pasture, Roca Verde, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!